May Day rallies and strikes: LIVE UPDATES

Participants of the May 1 rally held on the cable-stayed bridge across Zolotoy Rog Bay in Vladivostok.(RIA Novosti / Vitaliy Ankov) / RIA Novosti

Millions took to the streets to take part in May 1 demonstrations around the globe. From union rallies to protests and clashes with police, the International Labor Day events drew attention to the issues of austerity, unemployment and workers rights.

06:48 GMT: Canada’s Montreal police detained 300
protesters following a May Day rally demonstration in Old Montreal
organized by the Anti-Capitalist Convergence, or CLAC group. Police
declared the rally illegal shortly after it started, citing
Montreal’s controversial public order bylaw P-6, which makes it
illegal to participate in an gathering with a face obscured by a
scarf, hood or mask, and requires protesters to disclose to police
the location and itinerary of their demonstration ahead of
time.

23:50 GMT: Thousands have marched in downtown Los Angeles
to protest immigration policy, as part of the marches taking place
across the country. The rallies coincided with Congress discussing
a new bill that would give a path to US citizenship to some 11
million illegal immigrants.

23:45 GMT: In Mexico, workers, teachers and students
gathered in the capital, Mexico City, to demand social reforms. The
event ended with people throwing all manner of objects at the
police, including street barriers. The authorities retaliated with
shields and batons, with a violent brawl ensuing between both
sides.

All main streets in the city are now closed, following hours of
chaos and violence.

The group of people had gathered at the Plaza de Constitucion
and headed in the direction of the city’s main square – ‘El
Zocalo’, waving banners with images of the revolutionary legend Che
Guevara and spray-painting slogans amongst which the anarchy symbol
proved numerous.

Approximately 10,000 workers and up to 15,000 students and
teachers from remote states, including Oaxaca, Chiapas and
Michoacán, were present as well, demonstrating their opposition to
newly-passed labor reforms.

23:30 GMT: Huge rival May Day rallies have been held in
Venezuela with the opposition and the supporters of the
newly-elected President Nicolas Maduro taking to the streets of
Caracas and across the country. The marches come amid a continuing
dispute over the results of last month’s presidential vote which
saw the hand-picked successor of late leader Hugo Chavez beat
opposition candidate Henrique Capriles.

23:00 GMT: Hundreds of thousands of Cubans were joined by
around 2,000 labor union activists from over 73 countries as they
marched with banners bearing the images of Cuban leaders Fidel and
Raul Castro in Havana on the International Day of Labour, also
known as May Day. Using the slogan "United for Prosperous and
Sustainable Socialism", the marchers also carried portraits of
recently deceased Venezuelan President and Cuban ally Hugo
Chavez.

22:23 GMT:At
least five people were arrested at a demonstration in New York City
as police hounded approximately 150 May Day protesters en route to
Union Square Park. As a procession of demonstrators marched toward
the rallying point, a faction ran into the street waving red and
black flags, denouncing capitalism.

Witnesses told The New York Times that police chased the
protesters into the street, forcing one to the ground
violently.

Others in the crowd cursed and shouted at the police as
uniformed officers pushed through the marchers, pushing pedestrians
and news photographers alike.

21:00 GMT: Thousands of protesters marched on May Day in
London to celebrate International Workers Day. The protest was
dominated by communist supporters, mainly of Turkish origin.

Groups and organisations protesting included 'Alevi Turkish
Youth UK' wanting more support for workers' rights, left-wing
Turkish football team Kartal Haber, the Communist Party of Great
Britain (Marxist-Leninist) - a party guided by scientific socialist
and communist understanding and principles - and anti-capitalist
groups.

20:00 GMT: German police deployed water cannon against
thousands of protesters in Hamburg as May Day riots rocked the
northern German port city on Wednesday. Protesters hurled bottles,
stones and firecrackers at police in the demonstration, held to
give solidarity to southern European states hit by the global
economic downturn.

Around 1,600 police officers shadowed the protest march closely
in the city's Altona district, which kicked off in Spielbudenplatz
at 10:30 local time (08:30 GMT). Protesters marched under banners
proclaiming anti-capitalism, demanding an end to long working hours
and dwindling salaries. Protesters brandished the flag of the
communist movement, emblazoned with a golden hammer and sickle to
show their opposition to the capitalist policies they blame for
tearing the region asunder.

19:17 GMT: More than 400,000 people attended events
marking the Labor Day in Germany, according to the country’s
unions. However, the media’s attention was locked to separate
rallies organized by German far-right extremist groups, as clashes
with anti-fascist demonstrators and the police were anticipated. In
Berlin the police had to remove several activists, who chained
themselves to a concrete weight to block the way of a 250-strong
march of the far-right extremist NPD party supporters. Some 2,000
leftists were also reportedly pushed back by the police to avoid
direct clashes.

Meanwhile, the head of German Trade Union Confederation (DGB)
Michael Sommer said the German government should do more to help
the rest of the euro zone. “We cannot allow this continent to be
‘kaputtgespart’ - forced to save so much that it breaks apart,”
Sommer said as quoted by Reuters.

16:52 GMT: A protester was arrested in the Danish city of
Aarhus after attempting to shoot at the country’s Prime Minister
Helle Thorning-Schmidt, with a water pistol, AP reported. Those
demonstrating against planned public sector cuts met the PM’s
speech with booing and pictures of unhappy faces.

14:41 GMT: Thousands of people have taken to the streets
of the Spanish capital, Madrid, carrying placards with slogans
against austerity. “There has never been a May 1 with more
reason to take to the streets,” the head of the Spain’s UGT
union Candido Mendez said at the Madrid demonstration. The
unemployment level in Spain has hit a record-breaking 27 per cent
and the country’s economy has been shrinking for the last seven
quarters.

13:47 GMT: Water cannons and teargas were used by riot
police in the Turkish city of Istanbul to disperse the May Day
marchers trying to reach the main city square. At least 12 people
have been injured in clashes, according to AFP, including the
agency’s photographer. Police have reportedly started arresting the
demonstrators.

13:05 GMT: Pope Francis made a May Day speech in St
Peter’s Square, saying unemployment was the product of a focus on
profits over social justice. The Pope called on European leaders to
“to make every effort to relaunch the labor market.”

“Work is fundamental for dignity. I think of labor market
difficulties in various countries. I think of people, not just
young people, who are unemployed often because of an economic
conception of society based on selfish profit outside the bounds of
social justice,” Pope Francis said.

10:36 GMT: The annual march of the French far right party
Le Front National to celebrate Joan of Arc, which takes place on
May 1, brought out the party’s president Marine Le Pen, as well as
vice-president Florian Philippot.

10:05 GMT: Fifty-five thousand Indonesians, wearing
costumes symbolizing ants to show the exploitation of workers,
protested against labor outsourcing policy and low wages in
Jakarta. Security was stepped up for the rally.

09:35 GMT: At least four people have been injured in
clashes between police and demonstrators in Turkey, following the
security forces using teargas and water cannon.

09:15 GMT: Ferry and train services in Greece have
stopped due to the general strike for May Day. Hundreds of Greeks
are gathering for rallies, protesting the highest unemployment in
the EU, as well as the harsh austerity measures.

08:35 GMT: Tens of thousands take to the streets in
North Korea to celebrate May Day.

08:21 GMT: Indian members of the All India Trade
Union Congress (AITUC) have participated in a rally in
Hyderabad.

08:10 GMT: In Bangladesh, tens of thousands took to the
streets to demand the execution of textile bosses over the collapse
of a factory complex, with the final death toll threatening to
topple 500.

07:40 GMT: Seventy thousand people are already taking
part in the May Day rally in central Moscow, according to police.
This means the organizers have already exceeded the number of
agreed participants by 10,000 people.

07:34 GMT: Public transport has been suspended in
Istanbul as part of local authorities’ precautions to curb any
illegal gathering in Taksim Square during May Day.

07:25 GMT: Some 90,000 people are expected to participate
in the May Day demonstrations in Moscow.

07:15 GMT: Turkish police clash with May Day protesters
in Istanbul, using water cannons and teargas to disperse
crowds.

06:50 GMT: Cambodian workers have taken to the streets of
the capital, Phnom Penh, to call for a pay rise.

06:30 GMT: Traffic has been blocked in the center of
Moscow due to the May Day demonstrations that are set to involve
tens of thousands of people. Some of the streets in the heart of
the Russian capital have become pedestrian-only for the day.

06:07 GMT: In Russia’s Far-Eastern city of Vladivostok,
40,000 people have taken part in the May Day demonstrations, with
many of them brought to the regional center by shuttle buses.

05:30 GMT: Throughout the world, nations are celebrating
International Labor Day on May 1. Dozens of events will be
unfolding during the day, including an all-out strike in Greece,
anti-euro demonstrations across Europe and massive demonstrations
across Russia.